A WOMAN has spoken of her daily battle to recover after being critically injured in a gas explosion.

Helen Desalegn spent 15 days in a coma and nearly five months in hospital after a blast blew the front off the Simba shop in Alfreton Road, Radford.

Helen, who moved to the UK from Eritrea in Africa two years ago, had been cooking food for friends at the premises when the explosion occurred on August 9, 2012.

Her clothes caught fire and passers-by helped put out the flames, but she suffered burns to a third of her body.

A year on from the explosion, the 22-year-old said she still feels the after-effects.

Speaking via an interpreter, Helen, of Westwood Road, Sneinton, said: "I'm living and I'm happy for that, but I feel like I've lost everything.

"Physically, I still have problems moving my arms, and I'm facing a lot of difficulties when people look at me.

"At first I was so depressed and I was unable to go out."

Prior to the incident, Helen was studying English while looking for work.

She had started helping at Simba community cafe around three months before the explosion.

Speaking for the first time about the incident, Helen said she had been preparing food for other members of Nottingham's Eritrean community when the blast happened.

She said: "I was rushing and I went to light the gas cooker and it exploded.

"I remember the room was full of fire and I was going outside when a guy came to try and help me and put me down on the floor. After that I remember being in the ambulance and that's it."

She was rushed to Queen Elizabeth Hospital in Birmingham in a critical condition, where she spent three months being treated for her injuries.

She was then transferred to Nottingham's City Hospital and was a patient there for around six weeks.

Helen returned home in December and initially received help from carers.

She now gets daily assistance from her friends.

One friend, Danait Solomon, 23, of Portland Road, Radford, said: "No one was expecting her to wake up in hospital.

"She was in a critical condition, and even the doctors were surprised when she started talking."

She added: "She can't cook or carry anything, and she can't even pick something from the ground now. Even getting dressed is difficult for her."

Helen thanked friends in the Eritrean and Ethiopian communities for their help since the blast.

She also said the man who had put out the flames on her body, Errol Wilson – owner of Angella's Salon next door to Simba – may have saved her life.

Helen said: "I want to thank the people who have helped me, especially the guy who held me and put me on the floor.

"If he hadn't been there, I think I might have died."

She faces more surgery next month as her recovery continues.

But in a small step looking towards the future, Helen has started learning about photography.

She said: "Looking like this it's difficult for me to go back to my country.

"Before the accident I was good at practical things. Now I cannot do that so I will try to learn and do something different."

An investigation by health and safety officers into the cause of the blast is continuing.

A NURSE has been struck off for giving drugs to the wrong patient – twice.

Orah Nyoka was employed by A24 Group Medical Staffing agency and at care homes across the county.

This month the Nursing and Midwifery Council struck her off the nursing register after finding her guilty of four charges, all related to administering medication.

The council heard that on one occasion she injected somebody else's medication into a patient who was not supposed to receive it, and she did not inform bosses of her mistake. She had also not accurately recorded medication she administered.

The council said: "The panel noted Mrs Nyoka repeatedly made medication administration errors between 2009 and 2012. The panel determined Mrs Nyoka's failures posed a serious risk to those in her care and noted the vulnerability of those residents. The panel had no doubt Mrs Nyoka's actions fell far below the standards expected of a registered nurse.

"Taking the charges found proved together, the panel was satisfied Mrs Nyoka's actions were sufficiently serious as to amount to misconduct."

The hearing also found Ms Nyoka – who worked around 300 shifts – had, while working at Willow Brook care home in Notts, administered medication to a patient more than 12 hours after it should have been taken.

The council also criticised Ms Nyoka's attitude in light of her mistakes.

It said: "Mrs Nyoka's repeated failings were serious, as were the potential consequences to those in her care. There was no evidence before the panel that Mrs Nyoka had reflected adequately upon the significance of her failings.

"Since the incidents, Mrs Nyoka failed to demonstrate her practice is safe or that she has taken positive steps to address her failings.

"The panel was mindful of the potential impact of repetition of such failings in the future and could therefore not rule out continuing risk to the health, safety and wellbeing of the public."

The offences took place while she worked for three care homes named as Willow Brook and Alexandra Nursing Home, and Woodview Care Centre in Lincoln.

TWO would-be robbers almost ran over an 11-year-old boy as they tried to raid a jeweller's on one of Nottingham's busiest streets.

Mum Pam Martin said she could only look on as the men just missed her son Alfie while speeding towards the shop on a motorbike.

One of the men then tried to smash the glass cabinets at Goldsmiths in Clumber Street with a sledgehammer before they both sped off on the bike.

The attempted robbery happened at around 9.20am yesterday while the street was full of people on their way to work or out shopping.

Ms Martin, 41, of St Ann's, was with her son in Clinton Street East, off Clumber Street, when the men struck.

She said: "We turned around and suddenly there were these two chaps on a motorbike. They nearly hit my son and I was shouting at them.

"The next minute there was smoke in the street, and then they were riding away again.

"The guy on the back nearly fell off and had to grab the handle to stay on. They were all in black and had their faces covered. You see it on Crimewatch but don't expect to see it happen in front of you like that.

"It scared my son and he was shaking afterwards."

It is believed the smoke from the shop was caused by an anti-theft smokescreen that was triggered during the raid.

A 27-year-old sales assistant at Jessops, who asked to be named only as Sedu, saw the men pull up and one run inside the shop.

He said: "I saw him go in. He was in there for a minute.

"It is surreal to believe I witnessed something like that.

"It happened so quickly. Within five minutes they were gone."

He added: "He was smacking the glass with the hammer [inside the shop] and the alarm went off. He did not get anything."

Ann Jones, 59, who works at the nearby Greggs shop, said: "It is the busiest street in Nottingham. I just can't believe it – somewhere like Goldsmiths is a prestigious shop."

Staff at the Goldsmiths store, which specialises in diamonds and sells watches and jewellery, declined to comment.

The police spokeswoman added: "The men made off towards the Lace Market on the motorcycle – a black and white Triumph Street Triple, registration YX12 UPW.

"The bike was later found abandoned at a skate park in Maple Street, Radford."

Anyone with information is asked to call police on 101 or Crimestoppers on 0800 555111.

Did you witness the raid? Contact newsdesk@nottinghampostgroup.co.uk

A FATHER of two is furious after his travel company refused to re-book a £5,000 trip to Egypt, despite mounting hostilities in the country.

Although more than 1,000 people have been killed in Cairo, Adrian Churchett was told his destination was safe to travel to and he is not entitled to an alternative.

Mr Churchett, a telecoms manager from Stamford Road, West Bridgford, booked a family holiday three months ago to Sharm El-Sheikh for himself, partner Clare and their sons, Toby, 5, and Dylan, 7.

The 38-year-old dad said his kids were thrilled about travelling to the land of pyramids and mummies.

He said: "It was to be their first holiday abroad. They had studied Egypt at school for a project.

"I talked about it with Clare and we wanted a relatively luxurious break."

He said they felt safe enough to travel, even after the political clashes over the past fortnight.

However, after reports on Friday stated that other European countries had halted all non-essential flights, he acted on behalf of his family.

Adrian said he is unwilling to compromise his family's safety for the sake of a holiday.

He said: "I don't know enough about the risk I'm taking by going, therefore you don't know what you're getting into.

"The kids know there are tanks and guns and they wish it wasn't happening."

Adrian said he wanted to rearrange the holiday at another location but Thomson refused on the grounds that Sharm El-Sheikh was safe.

He said: "It's a massive disappointment.

"It's a position that affects me greatly, but not them."

He added he would now try to take the boys on days out in the UK to make up for it.

A spokeswoman for Thomson said the situation in Sharm El-Sheikh had not deteriorated to pose a risk to tourists such as Adrian and his family.

She said: "Currently the Foreign and Commonwealth Office advise against all but essential travel to Cairo, Alexandria, Luxor and Suez.

"It is not, however, advising against travel to Red Sea resorts to which we operate, including Sharm el Sheikh – which is an eight hour drive from Cairo."

She added that under Package Travel Regulations and travel trade association ABTA, the situation did not classify a major change so full terms and conditions applied.

A spokeswoman for the Foreign and Commonwealth Office (FCO) said that travel to Sharm El-Sheikh is not advised against, but tourists should keep up to date.

She said: "The safety of British Nationals is of paramount concern. Our advice currently warns against travel to North Sinai, and all but essential travel to the rest of Egypt, with the exception of the Red Sea Resorts.

"We currently do not advise against travel to Red Sea resorts, but advise British Nationals to check FCO travel advice before going there."

What do you think? Email newsdesk@nottinghampost.co.uk

THE appearance on the market of 116 Boxley Drive gives a couple or young family the chance of acquiring an adaptable home in a quiet quarter of fashionable West Bridgford. Boxley Drive is an all-residential road with easy access to the A60 Loughborough Road and the A52 Clifton Boulevard, providing easy access to the M1 and M42.

The shops, schools, sports and leisure facilities of West Bridgford are nearby and the attractions of Nottingham city centre are within a 15-minute drive.

No 116 is a contemporary, skillfully-extended four-bedroomed detached family property in excellent decorative order. Built as a two-bedroom bungalow, the property has been extended with a loft conversion that has created two extra bedrooms.

Visitors enter the house, which has gas central heating and UPVC double glazing, via an entrance hall which gives access to bedrooms 3 (10ft 9in x 10ft 2in) and 4 (12ft x 6ft 4in), both of which have fitted wardrobes with mirror-fronted sliding doors; the latter has potential as a study.

Further down the hall are doors to the family bathroom, recently re-fitted with white three-piece suite, and the generously-proportioned lounge (19ft 7in x 10ft 10in) with its feature electric flame-effect wall-mounted fire.

The kitchen is fitted with a range of wall, drawer and base units with roll-top wood-effect work surfaces, matching breakfast bar, glass display cupboard, built-in ceramic bowl and half sink unit with mixer tap, built-in electric oven with four-ring gas hob and extractor fan and plumbing for washing machine and dish washer.

Double-glazed patio-style doors lead from both the kitchen and the lounge to the conservatory (17ft 6in x 9ft 7in), whose double-glazed French doors open on to the rear garden.

Access to the first floor is via a staircase leading from the lounge. It rises to a landing which gives access to the master suite and bedroom 2.

The master suite, with its built-in double wardrobes and French doors opening on to a Juliet balcony, has an en-suite shower room with double shower, WC hand basin and cupboard.

Bedroom 2 measures 11ft 6in x 8ft 11in and gives access to eaves storage.

At the front of the property is a concrete drive which extends to a secure parking area and detached brick garage. At the rear are low-maintenance gardens with patio, garden shed and greenhouse.

Gas, electricity, water and drainage are all connected to a property to which Rushcliffe Borough Council has given a Band C rating, currently incurring council tax of £1,426.83 a year.

Viewing is by appointment only.

EFFORTS to encourage city residents to become healthier have suffered a setback.

According to an annual report, the city is dragging its heels in four of the seven target areas created by the public health arm of the city council.

Smoking rates, child obesity, alcohol-related hospital admissions and the number of people successfully completing drug treatment are all areas in which the city is struggling.

Figures for last year suggest the number of smokers in 2012 has increased compared to 2011 – up from 28 per cent to 31 per cent of the local population. The England average for smoking prevalence is 20 per cent.

But the report said: "Performance needs to be seen in the context of a consistent downward trend over the last few years."

Martin Gawith, chairman of Healthwatch, a group which campaigns for better health services on behalf of patients in Nottingham, said: "We are below average but we have to remember the progress that has been made. And you have to look at these things in the long term, no matter if the short term is disappointing."

In terms of children who are overweight, the number of ten and 11-year-olds classed as "obese" in the city for 2010-11 was 564 – which is 20 lower than the figures for 2009-10. For the rest of the county, a greater fall has been seen, with 1,324 year six children classed as obese in 2009-10, dropping by 143 to 1,181 for 2010-11.

The county and city both have higher rates of child obesity than the national average. The number of obese adults has remained static for two years running in both Nottingham and in the rest of the county – with 22.7 per cent of the population classed as obese in the city, and 24 per cent of people in the wider county.

On the plus side, the number of adults taking part in some form of physical exercise in the city three times a week has radically increased from 2.6 per cent to 25 per cent.

The report said the rise in activity was "perhaps due to the Olympics" and that the "challenge will be to maintain the improvement".

Teenage pregnancy rates have also fallen in 2012, down nine per cent in 2011 – from 54.3 last year to 49.5 per 1,000 females aged 15-17.

City councillor Alex Norris, portfolio holder for adults and health said: "I'm pleased we're making progress in key areas like getting people more physically active and reducing teenage pregnancy. However, we still face a number of challenges. The economic climate makes some of our targets tougher to realise but we continue to be ambitious for our city."

IF you are looking to sell or let your house or buy or rent your next home, the Move – Open House Weekend could be right up your street. The summer months are traditionally a quieter period for the housing market but not this year, according to Frank Innes in Mapperley, where staff are gearing up for a busy autumn.

"Activity levels usually peak in the spring and then dip during the summer months as the holiday period takes people's focus away from moving home," says Karen Gillott, branch manager of Frank Innes.

"However, that hasn't happened this year, with the recent upturn in the housing market encouraging those looking to buy or rent property."

Frank Innes believes the trend will continue into the autumn, with an influx of buyers and tenants keen to move before Christmas. With the added incentive of an open house weekend, the prospect for hom eowners and landlords to sell or let their properties couldn't be better.

The Move – Open House Weekend is on Saturday and Sunday, September 14 and 15.

The team at Frank Innes will join more than 1,300 branches throughout the UK to help more buyers and sellers, landlords and tenants complete their sales, let their properties and purchase or rent a home this autumn.

In addition to the Open House Weekend, Frank Innes will be promoting the Government's Help to Buy scheme, which is assisting more first-time buyers to get on the housing ladder and purchase their first home.

Frank Innes' mortgage consultant is available to provide information about the scheme as well as assist buyers in finding the right mortgage for them.

The most recent open house event, held in May, attracted nearly 25,000 viewings and resulted in more than 2,000 sales.

Launching the Move – Open House Weekend' event, Karen said: "Sellers and landlords from across the UK have already started to register for the event, recognising that this is an ideal opportunity to promote their property and attract lots of viewings from interested buyers and tenants over the weekend. Previous open house events have been very successful for our customers and we expect this event to be no exception.

"The attraction for vendors, landlords, buyers and tenants alike is the opportunity for genuine home movers to see the widest selection of properties within one weekend at a time that is convenient for them, rather than different appointments scattered over days and sometimes weeks, which can make the process much longer."

She added: "There is still time for home owners and landlords to sign up and take part – we are keen to showcase as many properties as we possibly can to ensure we help match the right buyer and tenant to the right property and at the right price.

"The 'Move – Open House Weekend' is another example of the innovative ways that we are helping buyers, sellers, landlords and tenants overcome the typical barriers they are often faced with, by offering access to the most amount of properties in one weekend, combined with dedicated in-house mortgage advice and a conveyancing solutions, which ensures the legal aspects of your property transaction are managed by a professional property lawyer."

If you have a property to sell or let, you can be part of the UK's largest open house weekend. Call 0115 9620961 or visit the branch in Mapperley, Nottingham. For a full list of all the properties involved in the event, visit www.propertywide.co.uk

MUCH has been said in the national media about an upturn in the residential property market. But is this the case and is it true for Notts?

Mark Williams, partner and head of the private clients department at Nottingham-based Cleggs Solicitors, says: "There have been media reports about a strong upturn in the residential property markets in London and in the South and we know this to be the case, as we have many clients in these areas.

"But we can also give a view about what is happening more locally through our experience of trends in the Nottingham and Nottinghamshire residential property markets.

"We have many residential property clients within West Bridgford itself and in the villages south of the River Trent.

"These are perhaps the more affluent areas which have, to a significant degree, been quite insulated from recessionary impact, relatively speaking, over recent years.

"We also have clients across Nottinghamshire, Derbyshire and the East Midlands and it is apparent that there is a definite increase in confidence within the residential market generally over the summer and leading into autumn.

"Monitoring by the Royal Institution of Chartered Surveyors supports this and shows faster turn-around times for house sales but, importantly, more buyers coming to the market. This is due to a combination of factors. There is an increased level of funding in the mortgage market, coupled with low interest rates, the Government's Help to Buy scheme – at the moment limited to new-build properties but to be rolled out to the general market – and other, seller-specific incentives.

"There is no doubt that house prices are on the rise, a growth not seen since around 2006. Are we headed for another boom and bust? Is the market outstripping the general economy? Those in the know believe not and there are, reasonably confident, predictions of firm growth over the coming few years.

"Traditionally, of course, the UK property market is seen as an indicator of the financial stability of the UK economy as a whole, far more so than that in other EU countries. It's all about confidence. That is, confidence in job security, the recovery generally and indeed in the Government. Another recent survey apparently shows that trust in the present government's handling of the economy is growing. Could it be, therefore, that the buying public are taking the view that, for them, the storm has been weathered?

"We are certainly experiencing an increase in conveyancing instructions. We have, throughout the recessionary years, seen strong numbers in the new-build market, but there is a definite trend now for renewed private transactions.

"While residential borrowing generally has been slightly freed up in terms of the amount of mortgages available, this is not the same borrowing as was common in the pre-crash years.

"Lending criteria is much tighter, with mortgage companies insisting on lower loan-to-value/higher deposit scenarios and there is more emphasis on so-called sensible lending to those borrowers who can actually afford to service their loans. This should avoid too many defaults and repossessions and again add stability to the growth in the market.

"All in all the signs are good and, it appears, we can look forward to a period of solid and sustainable growth in the residential market going forward."

HEB'S latest auction saw a packed sale room, with 85% of the lots offered sold, raising almost £2,000,000.

The most popular lot on offer at the Nottingham Gateway Hotel was at Holly Gardens, where a development of two houses and four maisonettes was sold as offering an excellent investment opportunity. Following numerous viewings and having a guide price of £225,000, fierce competition on the day drove the final sale price to £305,000, the eventual buyer a local investment company.

Other lots which generated good interest included 11 Laurie Avenue, a two-bedroom mid-terrace house in Forest Fields in need of repair and modernisation and with a guide price of £55,000-60,000. Although it was the last lot of the day to be offered, interested parties waited patiently and the eventual purchaser beat off a telephone bidder with a final price of £69,500.

The interest in auctions from both buyers and sellers continues to grow locally. This reflects the national trend, with July seeing the largest number of properties go under the hammer since 2007.

Traditionally, August is considered to be a quiet time for property.

"However," said a Heb spokesman, "the market has continued to show signs of improvement since the start of the year and we are definitely seeing prices beginning to creep up. This is encouraging for both the property market and the economy as a whole and we hope this trend will continue over the summer.

"One of the key benefits for choosing to sell by auction is the speed at which unconditional exchange of contracts takes place, with the buyer paying a non-returnable 10% deposit with full completion four weeks after. This means that buyers are unable to pull out at the last minute or reduce their offers prior to exchange.

Heb's next residential and commercial property auction will be held at 2.30pm on October at the Nottingham Gateway Hotel.

A CHARITY is appealing for toys and instruments taken during a family play day to be returned.

More than 5,000 people attended the Arnold Play Day at Arnot Hill Park on Wednesday, August 14, hosted by Gedling Play Forum and Gedling Borough Council.

But the children's charity says around 30 items went missing at the event, including a variety of traditional toys and musical instruments.

It is now appealing for parents to return the missing equipment.

Gedling Play Forum's co-ordinator, Lesley Rhodes, said: "We have lost the occasional item before but never on this scale.

"We did have someone watching for people taking equipment away, but there were thousands of people there. I'm hoping it was an innocent mistake."

She added: "Nearly all the baby musical equipment has gone.

"People really need to set a good example for their children and bring it back.

"We are a charity and cannot afford to replace the equipment."

Gedling Play Forum has been staging the event annually since 2001.

It features a host of free activities for families to enjoy, including live music, dance and music workshops, sports, and arts and crafts.

Mrs Rhodes said this year's event had been deemed a success – but that the loss of the equipment could hinder the charity's activities in the future.

She said: "We've probably lost about £100 worth of toys and instruments, including diabolos, cup and ball, plate spinning sets, rattles and shakers.

"We would like to carry on offering traditional play and allowing children to play instruments, but if people take them home that opportunity will be lost."

Items can be returned to Gedling Play Forum's base at Wollaton Avenue Community Centre in Gedling.

They can also be taken to Gedling Borough Council's offices at Arnot Hill Park.

A Gedling Borough Council spokesman said: "We're very disappointed to hear about the items going missing and we urge anyone who may have any information to either contact the council or the play forum."

For more information about returning the items, call 0115 956 06 73.